The ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said yesterday it was not perturbed by the defection of five of its governors.
In what many see as a panic measure, the party said President Goodluck Jonathan had agreed to meet with the aggrieved governors on Sunday.
Before yesterday, Jonathan and the leadership of the PDP were indecisive on the decision to meet with the aggrieved members to resolve the protracted crisis in the party.
In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, the ruling party said: “We wish to state categorically that the PDP remains unperturbed as we are now rid of detractors and distractions. We urge all our members nationwide to remain focused and close ranks, now that agents of distraction have finally left our ranks.
“We wish to use this opportunity to remind all PDP members that the peace process initiated by President Goodluck Jonathan is still on course and we wish to thank him for his patience, humility and spirit of accommodation. The meeting between the President and aggrieved members shall hold on Sunday, December 01, 2013.
“We recognise the rights of freedom of association for all Nigerians and declare that it is within the rights of any Nigerian citizen to associate with anybody he/she deems fit.
“By this open declaration today, those individuals have unveiled their true intent, which most Nigerians suspected ab initio. They have chosen to abandon a broad based national platform and embraced a narrow group of ethnic and religious bigots whose main intention is to unleash a state of anarchy on Nigeria.”
The PDP maintained that there were no factions in the ruling party, citing a Federal High Court ruling to back its claim. It insisted that the party remained an indivisible entity under the leadership of Alhaja Bamanga Tukur as national chairman.
The party, in a veiled attempt to cajole some of the aggrieved governors, said: “We wish to commend the wise decision of some of the aggrieved governors to dissociate themselves from the action of some of their colleagues.
“ We assure all Nigerians that the PDP will continue to grow from strength to strength and will definitely emerge stronger from this event.
“We reiterate that the position of the law is very clear – that there is no factions whatsoever in the PDP.
“Finally, we wish to reassure our teeming members that our doors remain open to address all grievances. We shall, however, not condone any acts of internal subversion from any quarters.”
According to the PDP, the beauty of democracy is that in a political party system, some members are bound to leave while others come in.
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